Written questions by Joseph.

Innovation and Technology, what steps her Department is taking to improve a) broadband coverage and b) phone signal in rural areas in Kent.

Awaiting answer.

What discussions her Department is having with the Kent and Medway Resilience Forum, National Highways, and other stakeholders on eliminating the need for the deployment of Operation Brock to be deployed on the M20.

Awaiting answer.

Communities and Local Government, whether his department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing regulations for standard fines in car parks owned by private operators.

Awaiting answer.

Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment her department has made of the capacity and environmental performance of sewage treatment infrastructure serving new housing developments.

The Government now requires sewerage undertakers to plan ahead to manage drainage and wastewater. This is to ensure they meet future demand, support growth, and protect the environment. These plans will help sewerage undertakers to fully assess the capaci...

Communities and Local Government, what assessment his department has made of the impact of nutrient neutrality requirements on small-scale residential developments.

The Impact Assessment for the Planning and Infrastructure Act can be found here.

Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has discussed with local planning authorities the potential for allowing alternative on-site wastewater treatment solutions where these may reduce nutrient disch

The Government supports innovation in the water sector and works closely with regulators to ensure solutions comply with requirements. Nutrient pollution from wastewater is one of the key pressures affecting our rivers, lakes, and seas. The Government is ...

Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to help tackle fly-tipping in Ashford constituency.

The Waste Crime Action Plan sets a zero‑tolerance approach to waste crime and fly-tipping. It includes £45 million for the Environment Agency to double the enforcement, new police-style powers for officers, and budget for tougher sanctions for offenders, ...

What recent steps she has taken to ensure that (a) thistles and (b) ragwort are removed from land owned by her Department between the village of Mersham and the Sevington inland border facility.

The most appropriate weeding regime is being kept under review. The Department has undertaken the removal of weeds on previous occasions. The field is allocated for a biodiversity scheme, and we need to consider the impact of any weeding regime on the ove...

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of extending business rates relief to small businesses that are not in the retail, hospitality or leisure sectors.

The Government has introduced new permanently lower multipliers for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure (RHL) properties. These new multipliers are worth nearly £1 billion per year and benefit over 750,000 properties. Since these new multipliers were...

What steps he is taking to support small and medium sized businesses in a) Ashford constituency and b) Kent.

The Government’s Plan for Small Businesses, published in July, sets out the measures that the Government is taking to support small businesses across the UK. This includes tackling late payments, boosting access to finance, and removing red tape. This wil...

Innovation and Technology, if she has made an assessment of the effectiveness of the rules governing data protection that require sites and services using age verification to delete submitted information once that data has been used.

The Government has not undertaken a specific assessment of the effectiveness of rules requiring the deletion of data submitted for age verification once it has been used.The UK’s data protection framework requires personal data to be minimised and not retained for longer than necessary, including where data is collected for age verification purposes. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is independent of Government and is responsible for monitoring and enforcing the UK’s data protection laws.In January 2024, the ICO published an updated Commissioner’s Opinion on age assurance for the Children’s Code (https://ico.org.uk/about-the-ico/media-centre/news-and-blogs/2024/01/ico-publishes-updated-commissioner-s-opinion-on-age-assurance-for-the-children-s-code/).

What recent assessment she has had made of the potential merits of extending tax relief for pension contributions for people aged 75 and over.

The Government wishes to encourage pension saving, to help ensure that people have an income, or funds on which they can draw, throughout retirement. This is why, for the majority of savers, pension contributions are tax-free. This makes pensions tax relief one of the most expensive reliefs in the personal tax system. In 2023/24 Income Tax relief on total contributions and investment income of pension funds and National Insurance relief on employer contributions for pension savings cost the Exchequer £78.2 billion, with around 68 per cent of Income Tax relieved at the Higher and Additional rates. Ending the provision of tax relief on pension contributions at the age of 75 is a longstanding feature of the pensions tax system. It is the age at which at which most people will bring or will have brought their pension into payment. The Government does not want pensions to become a vehicle for tax planning, and the Government does not intend to change these rules.

What assessment his Department has made of trends in the level of (a) respiratory disease and (b) the number of emergency hospital admissions for respiratory conditions in (a) Ashford constituency, (b) Kent and (c) the UK; and what steps he is taking to help improve respiratory health.

Data is available for emergency finished admission episodes (FAEs) where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’. The following table shows the number of FAEs where there was a primary diagnosis of 'respiratory conditions’ for Ashford and England, for activity in English National Health Service hospitals and English NHS-commissioned activity in the independent sector, for 2024/25 and provisionally for 2025/26: Westminster Parliamentary Constituency of Residence2024/25 (August 2024 to March 2025)2025/26 (April 2025 to November 2025)Ashford830535England612,855511,558Source: Hospital Episode Statistics, NHS England. Available data on trends in respiratory conditions can be found on the Department’s Fingertips dataset. Data is not available by parliamentary constituency. Data is available at regional, county, unitary authority, and integrated care board level. Information for Kent is available at the following link: https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/search/Respiratory#page/1/gid/1/pat/15/ati/502/are/E10000016/iid/40701/age/163/sex/4/cat/-1/ctp/-1/yrr/1/cid/4/tbm/1

What steps he is taking to ensure that patients with known medical intolerances are able to be dispensed medication that is appropriate for their allergy.

Pharmacists are highly trained and skilled healthcare professionals. As part of dispensing medicines, pharmacists have a professional responsibility to inform patients about the medicines they are taking, and this may include mentioning any ingredients in the medicines based on any allergies or intolerances that the patient reports. Where a potential issue is identified, pharmacists can contact the prescriber to request an alternative medicine or recommend a different formulation or brand of medicine where appropriate.NHS England has made changes to enable pharmacists to access patient records when delivering clinical services such as Pharmacy First. This means pharmacists can view any known allergies or intolerances that are included in a patient’s record and use their professional and clinical judgement to supply medicines appropriate for the patient’s allergy or intolerance.

Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps her Department is taking with international partners to help tackle organised immigration crime.

Immigration crime is an international problem, and it can only be solved through international cooperation.That is why we have worked to develop agreements with France, Germany and Italy and others to break the business model of the criminal gangs, and why we are working upstream in Iraq, the Balkans, Ethiopia and elsewhere to disrupt smuggling supply chains, and reduce the drivers of illegal migration.

What steps his Department is taking to consider the development of national standards for adult social care in England.

National standards of care will be an integral part of the national care service we are building, so people can rely on consistent, high‑quality care wherever they live.We are already progressing towards this through our three objectives for adult social care: giving people real choice and control, joining up health and social care around people’s lives, and ensuring consistent high‑quality care underpinned by national standards.This year, the Government will set new national standards for care technologies and develop trusted guidance. This will mean that people and care providers can easily find out which technologies are fit for purpose, secure and meet compatibility requirements of health and social care systems in the future.At the same time, in partnership with the Department for Education, we are developing a catalogue of data standards for Children’s and Adult’s Social Care Case Management Systems. This will enable greater data sharing with other agencies involved in organising a person’s care, in turn, improving the experience of care, local authority efficiency and the quality of central government data collection and reporting.The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator for health and social care in England. CQC monitors, inspects and regulates adult social care services to make sure they meet fundamental standards of quality and safety. National measures of care quality have remained steady, with 85% of all social care settings regulated by the CQC rated Good or Outstanding on 2 January 2026. Where concerns on quality or safety are identified, the CQC uses its regulatory and enforcement powers available and will take action to ensure the safety of people drawing on care and support.The independent commission into adult social care is underway as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a national care service. Phase 1 will report this year.

What assessment his Department has made of trends in the level of social care standards across England; and what steps he is taking to support greater consistency of care provision.

National standards of care will be an integral part of the national care service we are building, so people can rely on consistent, high‑quality care wherever they live.We are already progressing towards this through our three objectives for adult social care: giving people real choice and control, joining up health and social care around people’s lives, and ensuring consistent high‑quality care underpinned by national standards.This year, the Government will set new national standards for care technologies and develop trusted guidance. This will mean that people and care providers can easily find out which technologies are fit for purpose, secure and meet compatibility requirements of health and social care systems in the future.At the same time, in partnership with the Department for Education, we are developing a catalogue of data standards for Children’s and Adult’s Social Care Case Management Systems. This will enable greater data sharing with other agencies involved in organising a person’s care, in turn, improving the experience of care, local authority efficiency and the quality of central government data collection and reporting.The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator for health and social care in England. CQC monitors, inspects and regulates adult social care services to make sure they meet fundamental standards of quality and safety. National measures of care quality have remained steady, with 85% of all social care settings regulated by the CQC rated Good or Outstanding on 2 January 2026. Where concerns on quality or safety are identified, the CQC uses its regulatory and enforcement powers available and will take action to ensure the safety of people drawing on care and support.The independent commission into adult social care is underway as part of our critical first steps towards delivering a national care service. Phase 1 will report this year.

If her Department has made an assessment of the effectiveness of road signs used by local authorities to help prevent road causalities among (a) hedgehogs and (b) other small mammals.

The Department has made no such assessment. Local authorities are responsible for the installation of the small wild animal road signs.

What assessment she has made of the potential merits of increasing the Lifetime ISA property price limit above the current £450,000 threshold for first‑time buyers.

Data from the latest UK House Price Index shows that while the average price paid by first-time buyers has increased, it is still below the Lifetime ISA (Individual Savings Accounts) property price cap in all regions of the UK except for London, where the average price paid is affected by boroughs with very high property values. As of 2024/25 there were over 1.3 million LISA accounts open and, since its introduction in 2017, the LISA has helped 314,600 people purchase their first property. The Government keeps all aspects of savings tax policy under review.

What discussions his Department has had with private contractors working in the NHS on paying staff the same rates as equivalent NHS staff.

There have been no specific discussions on this with private contractors working in the National Health Service.Independent organisations commissioned by the NHS in England, such as general practices or social enterprises, are free to develop and adapt their own terms and conditions of employment, including the pay scales that they use. It is for them to determine what is affordable within the financial model they operate.